NOTE TO THE WHITE EVANGELICAL PREACHERS: “SPEAK NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE!” – LEST WE DESCEND TO CIVIL WAR (WITH VIDEO)

THEOLOGY

SCRIPTURE. “But how will people call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how will they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how will they hear without a PREACHER (messenger)? And how will they preach unless they are commissioned and sent [for that purpose]? Just as it is written and forever remains written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news of good things!’

But they did not all pay attention to the good news [of salvation]; for Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed our report?’ So faith comes from hearing [what is told], and what is heard comes by the [preaching of the] message concerning Christ.” – ROMANS 10:14-17, AMP

KEY TERM: “PREACHER.” ‘Kérussó’ [κηρύσσοντος]: Root meaning refers to: “A Herald of Divine Truth (the Gospel); a Town Crier.” ALSO: “To proclaim, publish abroad or announce [widely] ‘Religious Truth’ with its attendant privileges and obligations.” NOTE:Strong’s Greek (2784) (‘kēryssō’) describes: “The Act of Heralding”—Publicly and Authoritatively announcing a Message from the King of Heaven.’ Its sixty-one New Testament appearances trace a redemptive thread: ‘God sends Heralds; the Heralds proclaim His Word; ‘Hearers are summoned to Repent, Believe, and then OBEY.’”

QUOTATION. “If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every proportion of the Truth of God except precisely that Little Point which the World and the Devil are at that moment attacking, I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Christ. WHERE THE BATTLE RAGES, there the loyalty of the soldier is proved, and to be steady on all the battlefield besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point.” – MARTIN LUTHER, c. 1530 AD

COMMENTARY. “There is not one God to the Jews, more kind, and another to the Gentiles, who is less kind; the Lord is a Father to all men. The Promise is the same to all, who Call on the name of the Lord Jesus as the Son of God, as God manifest in the flesh. All believers thus call upon the Lord Jesus, and none else will do so humbly or sincerely.

‘But how should any CALL on the Lord Jesus, the Divine Saviour, who had not HEARD of Him? And what is the life of a Christian but a life of prayer [or sustained conversation with the Lord]? It shows that we feel our Dependence on Him, and are ready to [completely] GIVE UP OURSELVES to Him, and have a Believing Expectation of our ALL from Him.’” – MATTHEW HENRY, Exposition of the Old and New Testaments, 6 vols., 1708-1710; edited

II. TEACHING: THE LAMPSTANDS

“But I [Jesus] have this [one charge to make] against you: that you have LEFT [‘aphiémi’ (ἀφῆκες) ‘rejected, renounced, abandoned’] the love that you had at first [you have deserted Me, your first love]. Remember then from what heights you have fallen. REPENT (change the inner man to meet God’s will) and do the works you did previously [when first you knew the Lord], or else I will visit you and REMOVE [‘kineó’ (κινήσω): ‘shake in order to separate’] your lampstand from its place, unless you change your mind and repent.” – REVELATION 2:4-5, AMPC

COMMENTARY. “For Jesus to Remove your Lampstand from its place would mean the church would cease to be an effective church. Just as the seven-branched Lampstand in the Temple gave Light for the PRIESTS to see, the Churches were to give [God’s] Light to their surrounding communities. ‘But Jesus warned them that their Lights could go out. In fact, Jesus Himself would EXTINGUISH any light that did not fulfill its Purpose.’ The Believers [and especially the Priests!] in this church needed to REPENT of their sins.” – RONALD A. BEERS, Executive Editor, Life Application Study Bible, 2022, p. 2909; edited

I have agonized over strong passages these past five years and more, laboring to AWAKEN PASTORS across the Nation of their grave sins of either affirming or ignoring President Trump’s vicious assaults on both Church and State with venomous lies. TO DATE: None that I have been close to during all that time. None.

Therefore, before penning this severe essay, I inquired of the Lord whether to remain General or go Specific, and name names. I heard this: “Yes, go ahead and become Specific, but only with fear and trembling, knowing that you too are but dust.”

TWO ILLUSTRATIONS. So with that Instruction close in mind and heart, I will briefly review Two Mega-Churches that have demonstrated both some Integrity alongside a larger Reluctance (and at times truculence) toward telling Hard Truths regarding the dangers of MAGA Christian Nationalist Movement.

I post the following in the spirit of exposing serious error in the American Church according to the Teaching of Paul: “And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather EXPOSE [‘elegchó’ (ἐλέγχετε)-‘convict, tell a fault, rebuke’] them” (Ephesians 5:11, NKJV).

PASTOR LORAN LIVINGSTON. Loran Livingston is an American preacher and pastor renowned for his long-standing leadership of Central Church of God in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he has served as Senior Pastor since 1977. Noted for his inspiring, fiery delivery, he preached on April 14, 2024 a fierce invective against the Trump Bible as “Blasphemy.” Some of you may have heard him since it literally went viral on the Internet and to this day continues to be lauded as one of the most courageous Church messages of the Era. However, only to reveal in another sermon that he voted for Trump the following November 5, 2024: “I did not vote for a Man, but for a Principle.” For whatever reasons, I was not able to locate the later sermon after several attempts to document here what a testify before God I heard with my own ears late last year.

DR. DANIEL GROTHE. Dr. Grothe is now senior pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs, Colorado, where my wife Suzette and I attended off and on from the days of disgraced founding Pastor Ted Haggard and more recently disgraced, senior Pastor Brady Boyd. Grothe is a gifted speaker, author, and minister whose messages emphasize the Love of Christ. His sermon on Sunday February 8 on Exodus 20 was strong overall, with emphasis upon obedience to both the Ten Commandments in the forms revealed by Christ and the Sermon on the Mount. He ended with a superb illustration of Corrie ten Boom’s forgiveness of a German guard who had asked for forgiveness. But he did not take it to the last level to comment about Donald Trump’s Detention Centers where horrifying things are taking place. I wrote a respectful but zealous message on the Church thread with documentation from Physicians for Human Rights, and it was deleted almost immediately after a second attempt.

THE CHURCH.Astonishingly, the WHITE EVANGELICAL CHURCH (including most ‘Fundamentalists, Pentecostals, and Charismatics’) still provides a solid block of immovable support for Trump.’ Even after innumerable documented reports of violent assaults on US citizens, ‘disappearings,’ murder, and an indisputabe record of a venally corrupt President and Administration:

What in the Name of God is going on in His Church?

A study reported by MATTHEW A. MCINTOSH, Public Historian for Brewminate, “a bold blend of news and ideas, a digital publication at the crossroads of history, culture, politics, and current affairs” (Website Promo, ret. Feb. 9, 2026), gives us much to consider.

His dispassionate review is titled, appropriately: “Cult Collective: Why White Evangelicals Still Stand with Trump,” published December 5, 2025 (edited). Here are his MAIN POINTS for your consideration.

OPEN. “White Evangelicals continue to stand apart in American Politics, remaining Donald Trump’s most loyal constituency even as his approval ratings have fallen across nearly every other major group during his second term. National polling shows that while support for Trump has eroded among independents, suburban voters, young adults, many Mainline Protestants, and Catholics, White Evangelicals still back him by overwhelming margins. Their ‘Loyalty’ [“Fidelity to a Prince or Sovereign,” Noah Webster, 1828] was instrumental in returning him to the White House, and surveys conducted after the election show that a significant share of them believe Trump’s Presidency, ‘Aligns with God’s Plan.’”

DECEPTION. “This Loyalty has created a Striking Divide among Religious Americans. While some Faith Communities have distanced themselves from Trump, many White Evangelical voters continue to frame him as a Defender of their values and a necessary force against cultural and political changes they oppose. A portion of this group describes his Leadership in explicitly theological terms, attributing his political survival to ‘Divine Intervention’ rather than electoral shifts or policy outcomes.” NOTE: Evangelical author and speaker Lance Wallnau is widely credited with first popularizing the ‘Divine Appointment’ narrative for Donald Trump, starting as early as 2015. He likened Trump to a modern-day ‘Cyrus,’ a Biblical figure used by God despite not being a believer. Wallnau formalized this in his September 30, 2016 book, ‘God’s Chaos Candidate: Donald J. Trump and the American Unraveling.’

ESCALATION. “As Trump’s broader coalition fractures, the durability of his Evangelical support has taken on greater political significance. ‘It reveals not only the Strength of his hold on a specific Religious Bloc, but also the Deeper cultural and theological commitments that shape how many White Evangelicals interpret POLITICAL POWER.’ That Commitment continues to define the Landscape of his Second Term and may shape National Politics for years to come. Polling throughout Trump’s Second Term shows that White Evangelicals remain the most supportive Religious Group in the country, often backing him at levels far higher than any other major demographic.”

DIVINITY. A notable share of White Evangelicals interpret Trump’s Political Role through a ‘Religious Lens,’ and this ‘Framing’ has become an important part of his continued support. Surveys from major research organizations have found that a portion of White Evangelicals believe: ‘Trump was chosen by God to lead the country or that his presidency was part of a Divine Plan.’ While the exact numbers vary across polls, the presence of this belief has been consistent enough to appear as a distinctive feature of evangelical political identity during both of Trump’s presidencies. This ‘Theological Framing’ has been reinforced by some high-profile Evangelical Leaders who describe ‘Trump as a defender of Christianity’ or as someone uniquely equipped to safeguard the Nation’s Religious Heritage. Their messaging often portrays political conflicts as Spiritual Battles and encourages believers to see Trump’s election victories as signs of Divine Favor.”

REMNANT. “Trump’s support among White Evangelicals remains strong, but recent polls show small ‘Signs of Erosion’ as his Second Term progresses. National surveys report declining approval ratings across the general population. And although Evangelicals continue to back him at higher rates than any other major group, ‘their numbers have slipped modestly compared with earlier years. Younger Evangelicals in particular show more mixed views,’ with some distancing themselves from Trump’s rhetoric and questioning the fusion of faith and partisan identity that defined his earlier campaigns.” DK: Happily, we have a growing number of three-time Trump voters in our small Peloton Confessing Fellowship who have recently joined us. For whom we give God a shout of praise and a warm welcome!

MEDIA. “‘Support for Trump is also reinforced by the Media Environment that Shapes Evangelical Political Views.’ Research from universities and national survey centers has shown that many White Evangelicals rely heavily on ‘Conservative’ [sic] Christian Media networks, talk radio programs, and social media channels that frame Trump as a defender of their interests. These Outlets often portray political conflicts as Existential Battles for Religious Identity, which strengthens loyalty and makes believers more resistant to messages from outside their preferred media sources.” NOTE: Pro-Trump Media in 2025-2026 includes a growing network of conservative, pro-administration outlets, with Fox News maintaining its conservative, Trump-friendly perspective. Key outlets include Frontlines, Lindell TV, Human Events, the Post Millennial, RedState, Newsmax, and The Washington Times. Other voices include The Daily Wire, Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, Jordan Peterson, and a vast host of others.

DIVISION. “‘The DIVIDE within Religious [and Secular] America is now a defining feature of Trump’s Second Term.’ Whether White Evangelical support remains stable or begins to fracture will shape not only the future of his presidency, but also the role CHRISTIAN IDENTITY plays in American public life. The direction this Movement takes will influence how the Nation understands Faith, Power, and Politics for years to come.” NOTE: There are those analysts – and I am one of them – who believe that these Divides are so deep and self-reinforcing, that America is headed for a Second Civil War. That is what we consider in the next sobering section.

III. OUR NEXT WAR

“When they take you and turn you over [to the court], do not worry beforehand about what to say, but say whatever is given to you [by God] in that hour; for it is not you who speak, but it is the Holy Spirit [who will speak through you].

Brother will betray brother to [be put to] death, and a father [will hand over] his child; and children will rise up and take a stand against parents and have them put to death. You will be hated by everyone because of [your association with] My name, but the one who [patiently perseveres empowered by the Holy Spirit and] ENDURES [and bears up under suffering] to the end, he will be saved.” – MARK 13:11-13, AMP

THIS JUST IN. “A British woman who was shot dead by her father while visiting his home in Texas had argued with him about US President Donald Trump earlier that day, an inquest has heard. Lucy Harrison, from Warrington in Cheshire, was shot in the chest on 10 January 2025 in Prosper, Texas. Police in the town investigated the 23-year-old’s death as possible manslaughter. However, no criminal case was brought against Kris Harrison after a grand jury in Collin County declined to indict him.’” Selah.

Based on the Scripture above and this recent case, I cite the revised chapter on the Second Seal (Revelation 6:3-4) in my recent book, The Sixth Seal II: A Pre-Wrath Commentary Redux on the Rise of Donald Trump and the Decline of the American Order, 2017-2021 (Jan. 30, 2024).

“Of the five great wars yet to come, the one nearest to the American Door is Civil War. The Line for such a Second American Conflagration was drawn on the bloody pavement at the United States Capitol on January 6, 2021 … Sadly, by the time this is in print by [early 2024], I expect these ‘Domestic, Internecine Conflicts’ tohave rapidly increased, as the hyper-patriotic Christian Nationalists dig in their heels to ‘Save America’ at virtually any price. ‘The ultimate probability is, again, widespread Civil Disobedience, followed by intermittent guerilla-like acts of violence, leading to full-on Civil War with possibly simultaneous attempts by some states to secede from the Union’” (Kelly, 2024, p. 148; edited).

This is long before any of us envisioned the Constitutionally seditious Project 2025, nor the Nazification of American cities by the brutal forces of Trump’s private police brigades, radically reconstructed ICE Agents (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) in 2025-2026.

A SECOND CIVIL WAR. For those of you who were able to view the dystopian action thriller, “Civil War” (2024), we may easily take this as a graphic and brutal Sign of Things to Come.

To dive more deeply into this painful subject, we turn to an unapologetically alarming piece by KLAUS MARRE, a former Congressional reporter and current senior editor for US politics for Who What Why.

His article is titled, “The Second American Civil War is Already Here” (Jan. 18, 2026; edited).

OPEN. “‘Donald Trump’s aim to punish, terrorize, and subjugate any state that didn’t vote for him is the biggest threat to the country since the Confederacy split from the Union’ … From the moment he was sworn in, Donald Trump has waged war against the Cities and States that did not vote for him, against the Rule of Law, against Moral Decency, and against Democracy. ‘BY ANY MEANS NECESSARY, his goal is to turn the US into a Fascist State, with him above any Law and any Norm, and to Subjugate those who dare to defy his wishes.’”

DICTATORSHIP. “In order to Punish anybody who doesn’t support him, Trump is (ab)using his presidential powers in ways that are unprecedented, and he has demonstrated that he will use any tool, legal or illegal, to punish his opponents. He wants to starve Blue States into submission by withholding Federal funds; his Department of Justice has become a purely political operation; and, of course, he is using an unaccountable Paramilitary Force [ICE] to terrorize communities that voted against him (while also itching to use the actual Army that he has at his disposal against Americans).”

WAR. “‘We believe all of that deserves to be called “Waging War.’” Ironically, and this is the one way in which we concede that the term ‘War’ doesn’t quite fit what is happening, the side that relies on Violence in this conflict is ultimately going to lose. If the Protesters in Minnesota, for example, are goaded into fighting back, then that will only serve as a justification for an Escalation of the government-sponsored violence [which is precisely what President Trump desires].”

CRAFTINESS. “However, if the thuggish behavior of Federal Agents results in more bloodshed, then Public Opinion, the most potent weapon in the arsenal of the good guys, will swing against the Administration and anybody else who fails to rein in Trump. For example, if the baby that ICE tear-gassed [recently] had died, the entire Minnesota Operation would have fallen apart very quickly, especially since the Department of Homeland Security — in a since-deleted social media post — first suggested that the family, which had been caught in the crosshairs between protesters and law enforcement, was somehow to blame for what happened.”

RELENTLESS. “Unfortunately, a defeat in Minnesota, or wherever it comes, won’t mean that Trump will give up his determination to wage war against those who oppose him, just as South didn’t immediately surrender when the tide decisively turned against the Confederacy in 1863. There is too much at stake for him, and we saw in 2020 what he is capable of in defeat. Therefore, it would be foolhardy to expect any easy victories.”

CLOSE. “‘Just as it took almost exactly 100 years from the end of the Civil War to Bloody Sunday on the Edmund Pettus Bridge, vanquishing Trump and his Authoritarian Vision for America will be a lengthy fight.’ Fortunately, just like the Union, the good guys have strength in numbers and a just cause on their side. And we believe that, in the end, that will make the difference, even though it won’t be easy to defeat a determined Trump and his hateful ideology.”

AMERICAN RUBICON. “Nearly a century after the Confederacy’s guns fell silent, the racial legacies of Slavery and Reconstruction continued to reverberate loudly throughout Alabama in 1965. On March 7, 1965, when then-25-year-old activist JOHN LEWIS led over 600 marchers across the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma, Alabama and faced brutal attacks by oncoming State Troopers, footage of the violence collectively shocked the nation and galvanized the fight against racial injustice …

[Narrative] The demonstrators marched undisturbed through downtown Selma, where the ghosts of the past constantly permeated the present. As they began to cross the steel-arched bridge spanning the Alabama River, the marchers who gazed up could see the name of a Confederate General and reputed Grand Dragon of the Alabama Ku Klux Klan, Edmund Pettus, staring right back at them in big block letters emblazoned across the Bridge’s crossbeam.

Once [John] Lewis and [Hosea] Williams reached the crest of the bridge, they saw trouble on the other side. A wall of State Troopers, wearing white helmets and slapping billy clubs in their hands, stretched across Route 80 at the base of the span. Behind them were deputies of county sheriff Jim Clark, some on horseback, and dozens of white spectators waving Confederate Flags and giddily anticipating a showdown. Knowing a confrontation awaited, the marchers pressed on in a thin column down the bridge’s sidewalk until they stopped about 50 feet away from the Authorities.

‘It would be detrimental to your safety to continue this march,’ MAJOR JOHN CLOUD called out from his bullhorn. ‘This is an unlawful assembly. You have to disperse, you are ordered to disperse. Go home or go to your church. This march will not continue.’

‘Mr. Major,’ replied Williams, ‘I would like to have a word, can we have a word?’ ‘I’ve got nothing further to say to you,’ Cloud answered. Williams and Lewis STOOD THEIR GROUND at the Front of the Line! After a few moments, the Troopers, with gas masks affixed to their faces and clubs at the ready, advanced. They pushed back Lewis and Williams. Then the Troopers’ pace quickened. They knocked the marchers to the ground. They struck them with sticks. Clouds of tear gas mixed with the screams of terrified marchers and the cheers of reveling bystanders. Deputies on horseback charged ahead and chased the gasping men, women and children back over the bridge as they swung clubs, whips and rubber tubing wrapped in barbed wire. ‘Although forced back, the protestors did not fight back’ …

‘OUTRAGE at “Bloody Sunday” swept the country.’ Sympathizers staged sit-ins, traffic blockades and demonstrations in solidarity with the voting rights marchers. Some even traveled to Selma where two days later King attempted another march but, to the dismay of some demonstrators, turned back when troopers again blocked the highway at the Edmund Pettus Bridge.” – CHRISTOPHER KLEIN, “How Selma’s ‘Bloody Sunday’ Became a Turning Point in the Civil Rights Movement,” History, May 28, 2025; edited

QUESTION: How much has changed since the Selma March, beloved. And where is the White Church Outrage over Trump’s brutal dictatorship? Selah.

IV. THE REPLACEMENT OF CHRIST

“At that time many will be offended and repelled [by their association with Me] and will FALL AWAY [from the One whom they should trust] and will betray one another [handing over believers to their persecutors] and will hate one another. Many false prophets will appear and mislead many. Because lawlessness is increased, the love of most people will grow cold.” – MATTHEW 24:10-12, AMP

THE SLEEPING CHURCH. There are any number of ways I could have described the Nature and Spirit of the primarily White Evangelical Church today, but the one that keep coming home to me is SLUMBER: “To be in a State of Negligence, Sloth, Supineness, or Inactivity. ‘He that keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep’ (Psalm 121:4).” – NOAH WEBSTER, American Dictionary of the English Language, 1828; edited

Make that read: ‘Neither shall he who Shepherds the flocks of the Lord be given to Negligence, Sloth, Supineness nor Inactivity concerning the Whirlwind that howls at the very doors and windows of the Sanctuary!’

A recent AI Overview stated our dismal Current Condition this way: “In 2025, the American Church is widely characterized by observers as a ‘Slumbering Giant’ [‘Behemoth’] facing a critical, ‘Defining Moment’ [i.e., ‘Tipping Point’] marked by Severe Decline, Institutional Upheaval, and urgent Calls for Renewal. ‘Experts predict 2025 may be a “Death Year” for thousands of institutions.’ Estimates suggest as many as 15,000 churches could close, particularly affecting rural areas and mainline Protestant, Catholic, [and Megachurch] parishes” (Ret. Feb. 10, 2026; edited).

LAST CALL. There was a time in my past ribald life when those two words meant something entirely different than what it warns you Pastors here. It is not hyperbole, nor is it sensationalist, but theologically as solid as The Rock on Whom we are all being called one more time:

‘To Stand!’

The Great Apostle spoke it plain: “I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: PREACH THE WORD [as an official messenger]; BE READY when the time is right and even when it is not [keep your sense of urgency, whether the opportunity seems favorable or unfavorable, whether convenient or inconvenient, whether welcome or unwelcome]; CORRECT [those who err in doctrine or behavior], WARN [those who sin], EXHORT AND ENCOURAGE [those who are growing toward spiritual maturity], with inexhaustible patience and [faithful] teaching.

For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine and accurate instruction [that challenges them with God’s truth]; but wanting to have their ears tickled [with something pleasing], they will accumulate for themselves [many] teachers [one after another, chosen] to satisfy their own desires and to support the errors they hold, and will turn their ears away from the truth and will wander off into myths and man-made fictions [and will accept the unacceptable]. But as for you, BE CLEAR-HEADED in every situation [stay calm and cool and steady], ENDURE every hardship [without flinching], do the work of an evangelist, FULFILL [the duties of] your ministry.” – 2 TIMOTHY 4:1-5, AMP

DR. KELLY’S CHALLENGE. I close with a fiery invective from a former Fundamentalist Evangelical named TIM WHITAKER who became fed up with the Mainstream Evangelical community to found, The New Evangelicals. It is a Faith Community diametrically opposed to the insidious Christian Nationalism Movement and embraces those who Christ called us to love.

The intentionally provocative title of his essay: “This New Year, Leave Your White Evangelical Church” (Blog, Jan. 5, 2026; edited). In an impeccably organized argument, I close our study with his concluding points that to me, at this late point some ten plus years into the Trump Abomination, is long past due.

“‘White Evangelical Churches have spent decades telling people to fear “The World.” But when I left the Basement, I found the opposite to be true. THEY have become the thing worth fearing—especially for women, LGBTQ+ people, Black Americans, abuse survivors, and anyone who refuses to merge Faith with Nationalism …

This is why I say: LEAVE YOUR WHITE EVANGELICAL CHURCH! There is nothing of value there that you can’t find somewhere else. Community, friendships, belonging, children’s programs, worship, and ritual all exist in beautiful rooms of Christianity that don’t force you to choose between loving God and loving your neighbor.

‘You are allowed to leave—not because you’ve given up on Faith, but because you take your Allegiance to the Way of Jesus so seriously that you’re willing to endure discomfort to find liberation from toxic systems. Leaving isn’t the End of your story. It’s just The Beginning.’”

CODA. Beloved, with Jesus Christ watching the words I write: IF your Pastor cannot or will not live up to the Full Charge from Paul to Timothy we just read, then ‘I challenge you to Leave the Church for Christ’s Sake.’ You may or may not wish to have a meeting with him before you act given the length of time of their Dereliction (Matthew 18:15-17) – As God directs.

To say it as the Holy Spirit has Shouted it: “Come out of Babylon, now!” Before you too become consumed by ‘The Spirit of the Age.’ Which for me at least after ten years of intense research, reflection and deep prayer, is nothing less than: ‘The Spirit of the Biblical Antichrist.’

Selah.

MEDIA

YOUTUBE: https://youtu.be/4CvmprdiLT0